[Dovecot] Authentication

[eric]

Try as I may, I cannot get Dovecot to allow anything but blank passwords 
listed in a custom file I made for the purpose. It will not recognise 
anybody in passwd.
Only using POP3 on an internal network so little danger of incursions.
Once I created a password file with user names and no password, one user 
could login (from Outlook 2003) but another could not.
Telnet test also fails to authenticate.

I have allowed the group to write to the /var/spool/folder
Syslog simply showed authentication failed.
Relevant bits of my config:
disable plain text = no
mail extra group = users
pop3 uidl format %08Xu%08Xv pasted direct from the help
I have un commented auth user name characteres
mechanisms = plain
and I have set auth debug passwords = yes
user = root

System: Suse 9.3
Dovecot 1.0 rc13

Any ideas?


-- 
John McC